A former Flextronics International Ltd. executive, pleading guilty in a nationwide insider trading probe, admitted he passed inside information while working as a consultant to two expert networking firms.

John Kinnucan, the Broadband Research LLC founder who earlier refused to cooperate in an FBI probe of insider trading, admitted passing illegal tips on companies to hedge-fund clients and obstructing justice.

John Kinnucan, the expert-networker who refused to cooperate in a U.S. probe of insider trading before admitting to passing tips to hedge-fund clients, was sentenced to four years and three months in prison.